7. Primal Existence

Understanding G-d's independence.

It is also necessary to know that G-d's existence is imperative. It is absolutely impossible that He should cease to exist.

The Ramchal's first line (1.1.1) was that G-d is a "first existence, primal and eternal." The Ramchal is now going to deepen our understanding of what "primal" is.

A primal existence is the backdrop by which everything else can come into existence. In fact, even to say a simple statement like "G-d exists" suggests a certain weakness. Things "exist" because someone or something led to their existence. You exist because your parents created you. A table exists because someone decided to make it. The moon exists because a large rock developed out of a cosmic explosion.1

When we say that something exists, what we really mean is that right now, it happens to be around. In that sense, saying that G-d "exists" sounds too casual, too weak.2 Calling G-d primal connotes a deeper unquestionable type of existence. Again, not as a leap of faith, but as a natural consequence of what infinite existence must be. Since infinite is not part of the cycle of cause and effect, i.e. it was never created, therefore nothing brought infinite into being. Nothing "else" outside of infinite is responsible for its existence. Since nothing can cause or have any effect on G-d's existence, G-d's existence is not contingent on anything – so G-d can't "not be."

In this sense, we're also defining G-d as something completely separate from the world that He created. G-d had complete existence before anything else, anything finite, was brought into existence. As Maimonides states:3 "One could postulate G-d existing without a world; one cannot postulate the world existing without G-d."

This definition, which is a natural logical extension of the idea of infinite, refutes any notion of pantheism – that G-d is the sum total of all of existence, or that G-d is nature, or that G-d is the spirit within mankind. There are many new-age philosophies that tend to use this type of terminology to describe G-d. Phrases like "G-d is love," "G-d is the collective unconscious of mankind," and "G-d is goodness," are popular ways of describing G-d, mainly because it makes the notion of G-d so much more graspable. But ultimately, any of these definitions violates the very essence of a primal infinite being.

So let's take a step back and see what we've accomplished so far. We now have a clear rational reason to believe in an infinite source to creation. We also know that, the more we try to grasp exactly what this "thing" is, the more we realize how unimaginable it is. The last few points of our discussion have been rather difficult, and we're not done yet! So let's get back in touch with our goal here:

The Ramchal wrote The Way of G-d to provide an understanding of all the fundamental issues of Torah and of human existence. His method is to build a structure – a precise, conceptually-integrated structure – that not only provides definitions and explanations, but does so in a very systematic way. The Ramchal names Section 1 of his book "The Fundamentals of Existence," and he dedicates all of chapter 1 to a discussion of G-d's infinite nature. The Ramchal must be telling us that a deep understanding of G-d as an infinite source to creation is the foundation of understanding all the ensuing details. One cannot truly understand the Torah's approach to human suffering, spirituality, afterlife, the purpose of creation, etc. without first understanding the source of it all and the animating force that underlies all of creation.

It is furthermore necessary to know that G-d's existence does not depend on anything else at all. His existence is intrinsically imperative.

This point sounds similar to the last one, but in fact, it's a dramatic paradigm shift in our understanding not only of G-d, but of our own finite existence.

Here, we are talking about G-d's independence. And again, we find ourselves faced with the difficulty of trying to imagine the unimaginable. Everything we've ever come across in our experience of life involves dependencies. Everything is part of an ongoing cycle of cause and effect. When we imagine the idea of G-d creating, we think of it much like the idea of an artist creating a painting.

But we know that there's something deeper going on. Why? In the Ramchal's opening line, he described G-d not only as the one who "brought all things into existence," like the painter, but also "continues to sustain them." When an artist makes his painting, once he's finished and stepped back, there's now a new thing in existence – the painting – which has its own independence. Whereas the painting needed the painter to come into existence, it no longer needs the painter to continue existing. In fact, one day the painter will die. At that point, what will happen to the painting (aside from being worth a lot more money!)? The painting won't start to fade away or disappear. It will just keep on existing. This sounds obvious, but let's explore the dynamics of what makes it so.

Believe it or not, before the painter arrived on the scene, the painting already existed – just not in its current form. It existed in the form of tubes of paint sitting in an art supply shop, and a canvas sitting in the painter's attic, and as an idea in the artist's mind. In fact, the artist didn't create the painting at all! All he really did was take those raw materials and put them together on the canvas. To be technical about it, we would say that the artist didn't create the painting; instead, he formed it out of pre-existing materials. All forms of "creation" that we've ever experienced in life are of a very specific type, which we could label as "something from something."

Are there any examples in real life of creating something, literally out of nothing? Even the creation of a new life, a baby, is part of a larger biological process. The baby didn't come from nothing; the baby came from cells, which went through mitosis. And those cells came from an egg cell that became fertilized...

By contrast when we try to describe G-d creating, we run into a problem. Where are the raw materials that G-d uses to create? There are none! G-d is creating something out of nothing. We want to imagine the very first act of creation, at a point where there is no finite existence – no time, no space, no energy, no molecules, no laws of nature, nothing! So if the first thing that G-d created was light (or radiant energy, as scientists might prefer), how do we imagine that "light" coming into existence? There are no raw materials. There are no shops in the galaxies to go and buy some photons to start assembling them into rays of light. And if there are such shops, it's because G-d created those, too!

If we can't really know anything about what G-d/infinite is, then how can we really believe in it?

How can we know that G-d is independent of His creation?

What does it mean that all of creation is totally "dependent" on Him?

This may explain why the first of the Ten Commandments, commanding us to believe in G-d, doesn’t say “Believe in the Lord your G-d.” It simply states “I am the Lord your G-d.” In other words, it’s not a commandment to believe; it is a statement of an undeniable fact.

In fact, the Christian theologian Father Copleston, in his famous BBC radio debate with the preeminent atheist philosopher Bertrand Russell, made this point in his opening argument by saying that he cannot prove that G-d "exists." G-d doesn't "exist"; G-d just "is"!

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About the Author

Rabbi Moshe Zeldman performed undergraduate work in Artificial Intelligence and Philosophy at the University of Toronto, and has rabbinic ordination from Aish HaTorah. He lectures on a wide variety of topics at Aish HaTorah in Jerusalem, and to audiences around the world. He is also involved with research into hidden codes in the Torah. He resides in Jerusalem with his wife and their five children.

I live in rural Montana where the Cholov Yisrael milk is difficult to obtain and very expensive. So I drink regular milk. What is your view on this?

The Aish Rabbi Replies:

Jewish law requires that there be rabbinic supervision during the milking process to ensure that the milk comes from a kosher animal. In the United States, many people rely on the Department of Agriculture's regulations and controls as sufficiently stringent to fulfill the rabbinic requirement for supervision.

Most of the major Kashrut organizations in the United States rely on this as well. You will therefore find many kosher products in America certified with a 'D' next to the kosher symbol. Such products – unless otherwise specified on the label – are not Cholov Yisrael and are assumed kosher based on the DOA's guarantee.

There are many, however, do not rely on this, and will eat only dairy products that are designated as Cholov Yisrael (literally, "Jewish milk"). This is particularly true in large Jewish communities, where Cholov Yisrael is widely available.

Rabbi Moshe Feinstein wrote that under limited conditions, such as an institution which consumes a lot of milk and Cholov Yisrael is generally unavailable or especially expensive, American milk is acceptable, as the government supervision is adequate to prevent non-kosher ingredients from being added.

It should be added that the above only applies to milk itself, which is marketed as pure cow's milk. All other dairy products, such as cheeses and butter, may contain non-kosher ingredients and always require kosher certification. In addition, Rabbi Feinstein's ruling applies only in the United States, where government regulations are considered reliable. In other parts of the world, including Europe, Cholov Yisrael is a requirement.

There are additional esoteric reasons for being stringent regarding Cholov Yisrael, and because of this it is generally advisable to consume only Cholov Yisroel dairy foods.

In 1889, 800 Jews arrived in Buenos Aires, marking the birth of the modern Jewish community in Argentina. These immigrants were fleeing poverty and pogroms in Russia, and moved to Argentina because of its open door policy of immigration. By 1920, more than 150,000 Jews were living in Argentina. Juan Peron's rise to power in 1946 was an ominous sign, as he was a Nazi sympathizer with fascist leanings. Peron halted Jewish immigration to Argentina, introduced mandatory Catholic religious instruction in public schools, and allowed Argentina to become a haven for fleeing Nazis. (In 1960, Israeli agents abducted Adolf Eichmann from a Buenos Aires suburb.) Today, Argentina has the largest Jewish community in Latin America with 250,000, though terror attacks have prompted many young people to emigrate. In 1992, the Israeli Embassy in Buenos Aires was bombed, killing 32 people. In 1994, the Jewish community headquarters in Buenos Aires was bombed, killing 85 people. The perpetrators have never been apprehended.

Be aware of what situations and behaviors give you pleasure. When you feel excessively sad and cannot change your attitude, make a conscious effort to take some action that might alleviate your sadness.

If you anticipate feeling sad, prepare a list of things that might make you feel better. It could be talking to a specific enthusiastic individual, running, taking a walk in a quiet area, looking at pictures of family, listening to music, or reading inspiring words.

While our attitude is a major factor in sadness, lack of positive external situations and events play an important role in how we feel.

[If a criminal has been executed by hanging] his body may not remain suspended overnight ... because it is an insult to God (Deuteronomy 21:23).

Rashi explains that since man was created in the image of God, anything that disparages man is disparaging God as well.

Chilul Hashem, bringing disgrace to the Divine Name, is one of the greatest sins in the Torah. The opposite of chilul Hashem is kiddush Hashem, sanctifying the Divine Name. While this topic has several dimensions to it, there is a living kiddush Hashem which occurs when a Jew behaves in a manner that merits the respect and admiration of other people, who thereby respect the Torah of Israel.

What is chilul Hashem? One Talmudic author stated, "It is when I buy meat from the butcher and delay paying him" (Yoma 86a). To cause someone to say that a Torah scholar is anything less than scrupulous in meeting his obligations is to cause people to lose respect for the Torah.

Suppose someone offers us a business deal of questionable legality. Is the personal gain worth the possible dishonor that we bring not only upon ourselves, but on our nation? If our personal reputation is ours to handle in whatever way we please, shouldn't we handle the reputation of our nation and the God we represent with maximum care?

Jews have given so much, even their lives, for kiddush Hashem. Can we not forego a few dollars to avoid chilul Hashem?

Today I shall...

be scrupulous in all my transactions and relationships to avoid the possibility of bringing dishonor to my God and people.

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